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OlsJALlTY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AND ITS IMPORT- 
ANCE TO THE UNION. 



SPEECH 



. ELIJAH WARD, OF NEW YORK, 



IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, MARCH 31, 1858. 



"!ic ni>usc l.cinp' 'i< !hB Committee of the Whole on the 
.u- of the Union — 

Mr. WARD said: 

Mr. Cti airman: Tiie subject of admittin?; Kan- 
sas as a Slate uniiur the Lecompton constitution 
/ has been so fully and ably discussed by tlie dis- 
'• i''ui*i»e(' meiwi'a'' . of this honorable body that 
'.'.vff Mew can b;-? presented of the innniediate 
I's in issue. It has occupied the attention of 
:gre-!s until, I ara sure, the whole country must 
/eaiied of thedi.;oussion. It is a matter of deep 
i- .Ot that so large a portion of the time of this 
C' iig'i'ess has been bus absorbed. The nation 
'v ; juC-ji passed 'ly^-gli one of those periodical 
. iiciai ..uvutsioiis which, occur from the inflated 
'.'.e of bank paper, 'overtrading and speculation, 
. ving thousands in hopeless bankruptcy — all 
. iiches of industry arrested and commerce par- 
iiyzed; and yet tiearly four months of the session 
gone and not one f ff'i rt made, one v/ord of hope 
i)r consolation utrc^red. or any measure of relief 
brought forward i); Cfigress that exhibits an in- 
tertst, or sympathy t^"'', with those upon whom 
calamity has fallen so lu-avily. A sectional and 
political excitement lias been engendered, which, 
■•"hile it may not precipitate a dissolution of the 
'ion, weakens that bond of fraternal intercourse 
iiich should always exist between different sec- 
ns of our common country. My position was 
ly taken frotn a deep conviction of duty to the 
fvvtion and my party; my constituents have left 
nil' iVee to take such a course as my judgment 
■Uctatfcd; and whether it meets with their appro- 
vion or not, I know they will accord to me an 
niesty of intention and a rectitude of purpose, 
hile niyowji immediate constituents have con- 
led in my judgment, I have not been unmindful 
At the united Democracy of the city of New 
u-k,of which my districtis apart. -.md the local 
ganisntions, have cordially approved of tlie ac- 
ti of their Representatives that sustain the ad- 
smon of Kansas utulerthe Lecompton constitu- 
iij'n; that the Democratic press, the Democratia 
members of the Legislature, and the leading men 
^>t the party present an unbroken front in support 
Uje Administration, and exhibit a unity of 
'■'ion that has not been witnessed in our State 



for many years upon a prominent public ques- 
tiouv 

In addition to this concentration of public opin- 
ion, I have not been insensible toother influences. 
The city of New York is the largest commercial 
city in the Union. In 1856-57, five eighths of the 
total imports into the United States were imported 
into that city; one third of the exports, one third 
of the domestic produce, and over one half of the 
foreign produce, were exported therefrom; and 
there were collected at the custom-house there 
within the same time forty-three and a half mil- 
lion dollars upon dutiable imports; its banking 
capital, exclusive of that of private bankers, in 
1857, amounted to sixty-five and a half millions, 
and besides has millions invested in other corpo- 
rations, and in domestic manufacture and trade. 
These, too, are but a part of the vast interests 
that center there. The.se sources of wealth, pow- 
er, and greatness, cannot but suffer by the con- 
tinued agitation of this Kansas question, ending 
as it may in disturbing the harmony of the Union, 
without resulting in any practical good to the per- 
sons the slavery agitators desire to benefit. It is 
not to be denied that we are a commercial people, 
and that to commerce we are indebted for our ad- 
vancement, growth, and prosperity as a nation. 
The majestic vessels which carry our products to 
other climes, penetratingevery sea-port, bear with 
them civilisation, and instruct other nations that 
a power here exists that cannot be disregarded.. 
The commercial prosperity of my city, the whole 
countrj^, the onv/ard progress of commerce, and. 
the agricultural and tlie other departments of in- 
dustry, I believe, are involved in the public ques- 
tions which from time to time agitate the country. 
Impressed with the value and Importance of the^ 
Union to my constituents, I find reasons in addi- 
tion to party considerations for pursuing a course 
best calculated to end the present agitation, and 
restore once more amity and good feeling. No 
one who has observed closely the events in Kan- 
sas for the last few years can iail to trace to its 
propersource the presentexcitement, and perceive 
the urgent necessity of investing the people of 
that Territory with the rights of sovereignty, so 
that they may exercise the function of a State gov- 
ernment, and relieve Congress from further inter- 



/ 



fcrence. No analogy can be made liptween the 
grievances of the American colonies prior to the 
Pccvolution, as attempted by my colleague, [Mr. 
Haskim,] and the alleged complaints of a part of 
the people in Kansas. In the former case, Great 
Britain persisted in controlling local alfairs; and 
in thelatter, Congress desires, in the most speedy 
wny, to confer all power upon the citizi.Mis of that ;! 
Territory to manage their own affairs in their: 
own way, subject to the Constitution of the Uni- j 
led Slates. '' 

Mr. Chairman, from the course the debate has , 
taken, an appn^hension would prevail with those |; 
not cognizant of the facts that a foul and deep | 
wrong was aijout to be perpetrated upon the peo- ji 
pie of Kansas; that the provisions of the Kansas- ■ 
Nebraska act were to be violated, and the plat- ; 
form adopted at the Cincinnati convention relating 
to the question of slavery ignored. To demonstrate 
that this is mere clamor, it is proper that I should 
briefly refer to a fev/ antecedent events. The act 
referred to, passed in 1854, has this provision: 

" When ndmitted as n State, tlie said Territory, or any \ 
inirtion ol' the sanje, shnll lie received into tlie Union witli : 
oi without slavery, as llieir constitution may prescribe at 
the time ol' their'udniission ; it hein"; the true intent and 
iTicanimiolihis act not to legislate slavery into any 8tateoi- 
'iVrritorv, nor to eifcliide it therefrom, but to leave the peo- 
pie iheriiot' perfectly free to form and re!,'ulale their domes- 
lie institutions in their own way, subject only to the Con- 
stitution of the United States." 

The territorial government of Kansas was or- 
iganized under tne actcontaining this section. Tiie \ 
-resolutions of the Cincinnati convention, relating: 
.10 slavery and territorial organizatioi), were as j 
.joliow.s: I 

"And that we may more disttnclly meet the issue on i 
wliiclt a sectional party, subsisting exclusively on slavery 
I'.litation, now relies to test tlie lidelity of the people, North 
and tiouUi, to the Constitution and the Union — 

'■1. Resolred, That claiming fellowship with, and desirini; 1 
the cooperation of, all who re!,'ard the preservation ol the | 
Union under the Constitution as the paramount i-siie— and 
rpndiating all sectional parties and platforms concerning 
diiinestic slavery, which seek to embroil the States and in- 
cite to treason and armed resistance to law in the Terrilo 
ries ; and whose avowed purposes, if consiinnnated, must 
end in civil war and disunion— the American Deiiinciary 
recognize and adopt the principles contained in the organic 
laws establishing the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska, 
as embodying the only sound and safe solution of the slavery 
euestion upon which the great national idea of the people 
ol this whole country can repose in its determined con 
servatisin of the Union — non-interferknck by Conguess 

WITH SLAVERY IN STATE AND TeRRITOKY, OR IN THE UlS- 
TRITT OK Coi.liMlilA. 

"2. That this was the basis of the compromises of IfioO, 
confirmed l>y both the Uemocratic and Whig parties in 
national conventions, ratified by the people in the election 
<if 1852, and rightly applied to the organization of Territo- 
ries in 18.54. 

" 3. That by the uniform application of this Democratic 
principle to the organization of Territories, and to the lul- 
niission of new States, with or without douicstic slavery, 
as they may elect, the equal rights of all thr States will he 
preserved intact, the original compacts of the Constttininn 
maintained inviolate, and the perpetuity and expansion of 
this Union insured to its utmost capacity of embracing, in 
peace and harmony, every future American State that may 
bi! constituted or annexed with a republican form oi' gov- 
ernment. 

" Resolved, That we recognize the right of the people of 
all the Territories, including Kansas and Nebraska, acting 
through the legally and tairly expressed will of a majority 
of actual residents, and whenever the mnnber of their in 
. habitants justifies it, to form aconstitution, with or without 
(Imneslic slavery, and be admiued into the Uuicni uj'oii 
terms of perfect equr.iily with liie other .-'rate!-:.'-' 



It will be observed that neither the act nor res- 
olution contemplated that the constitution of K;in- 
sas should be submitted to the people. Thevi"- 
tended, unquestionably, tlie people should h 
the power to "regulate their domestic instic 
tions," but whether through a submission or 
convention was left tindetermined. A scntimei 
and feeling, however, grew up during the canvass 
that the slavery clause should be submiiied, and 
was acquiesced in, which would have been a fv^l 
compliance with the act and the platform, leavii '^ 
the constitution otherwise to be formed in such 
manneras the people judged best. 1 do not men- 
tion these fitcts as ap|irobatory of non-sybtnission, 
for I should have preferred that the whole con- 
stitution had been voted upon. But whether that 
could or could not have been done, rested with 
the people and the convention; such has been the 
uniform practice, I believe, relating to the terri- 
torial action for the admission of new States, ex- 
cept when controlled by legislative action. I men- 
tion this because my colleague [Mr. Haskin] has 
sought to create the impression that the question 
of submission of the whole constitution entered 
into the Inst presidential campaign as a distinct 
issue. Whatever individuals may have done, I 
assert that it was not then madp a part of th( 
Democratic creed. In conf (nation (f this posi- 
tion 1 cite the following pa*j age from the addresa 
of acting-Governor Stanton, under dale of April 
17, 1857: 

•• The government especially recofrnizes the tniritorialaet 
which provides for assembling a convention to thi'" a c<m- 
stiiuiicni with a viewto making application to Cojigress tbi 
; admission as a State into the Uir'"- That act is regarded 
as presenting the only test of the'/' aliffi -.Ttioii oi -voters for 
delegates to ttie convention, and all preceding repugnant 
restrictions are thereby repealed. In this light the actnsusr. 
he allowed to have provided for a full and fair expression of 
the will of the pcMiple, through t/ie delegates who may I e 
chosen to represent them in the constitutional conven'«M • 
i [ do not doubt, however, that, in order to avoid all pretext 
: for resistance to the peaceful operation of this law, //tR con- 
vention itself iviU. ill some form, yrovide for suhniUins the 
j great distraclins qiiesfion rcz'trdins, their social institution, 
I which has so Ifuig agitated the people of Kansas, to a fair 
I vote of all the actual honu fide residents of the Territory, 
I will) every possible security against fraud and violence. f( 
; llie constitution be thus fra'med, ujid the ijucslinn of diffcr- 
'■• ence thus siihmittrd to the rfectsioir. of the jico-jde, I belieVC 
j that Kansas will be admitted by »;ongress without delay a» 
\ one of the sovereisn States of tiie .An)erican Ibiion, and the 
' terriiorial authorities will be immediately withdrawn." 
j This question of submission has recently arisen, 
; and has been seized ii|)on since the comm'nce- 
I lYient of this Congress, and made the basis for 
. assailing the Pn-sideniof the United Statesforaii 
lionest and patriotic discharge of his high duties. 
T!ie President, in bis instructions to (iovernor 
j Walker, neiilu-r intended nor expected that any 
I other question than that of slavery was to be sub- 
{ mitted. In his message transmitting the Lecoinp- 
: ton constitution to Congress, he says: 
•'■ "No person thought of anv other question. Fenny own 
''' part, when 1 instructed Goverrtor Walker, in general leriiv, 
i in favor of submitting the constitution to the people, 1 i'i« 
I no object in view except the af! absorbing qnestioii ot sM- 
' verv. }n what irianrier the jjeople ol Kansas 'n^?,»y^fl' 
! I lite their other concerns, was not a subject which uttractto 
! niv aiteiuioii. In fact, the general provisions of our recent 
i' Slate constitutions, alter an experience ot '''!;'"V>'-";'''rA m. 
W so similar and so excellent that it would !>e difflcillt to < 
li far wrong nt the present day in fratiimg a 'lew coiii.I'iuii' . • 
! 1 •' I then believed, and still believe, that, under ih; "?'''',, 
'1 act, ;!ie Kansas convcntii>n were boiiiu! to sUk-'ic-'. i'"= • 



gl-^'i 



.iipoitaiit iiiieslinn of slavery to tli« penplc. ft was never, 
i.nvcviT, Miv o|iinioii thnt, iiiilf|)eii(U'iitly of 'liis act, tlitiy 
ivoiild liavo lici^n houinl to siiliiriit any ponioii of llii; con- 
stiliitioii I" a popular vole, in order to uivc it valiiiily. Ilari 
I eiitertaiiicd such an opinion, this would liavc; hceii in op 
po.-ltion to iiiaiiv precedents in our history, eoiMMK^iieinp; in 
llie very licst ai;!- of the Jleimlilie. It would have been in 
opposition to the, principle wljieh pervades our institutions, 
and which is every day carried out into practice, that the 
people have the right to delesiate to representatives, chosen 
liv ilieniselvos, their sovereis" power to frame constitutions, 
eiiact laws, and perforni many other itnportant acts, with- 
out requiring; that these should he snlijeetid to their siiliso- 
i|nent approliation. It would he a most inconvenient litu- 
iialion of their own power, imposed by the people upon 
iheuiselves. to e\clude tliem from exercisius; their sover- 
eignty in anv lawful manner tliey think proper. It is true 
that the people of Kansas miiiht, if they had pleased, liave 
required the convention to submit the constitution to a pop 
uiar vole; but this they hnve not done. The only remedy, 
tlierefore, in this case, is that which exists in all other sim- 
ilar cases. If the delegates who framed the Kansas con- 
stitution have in any manner violati'd the will of their con- 
stituents, tlie people always possess the power to chanp;e 
their constitution or their laws, according to their own 
plea.sure." 

The alleged grievance of the Republicans in 
llaiisas, arising; out of the non-submi.ssion, is not 
'if such a character a."? woiikl authorize us to re- 
ject the admission of Kansas as a State under the 
Lecompton constitution. Tiiey had an opportu- 
nity to vote fordelegates to form the constitution, 
also, when that instrument was subriiitlcd with 
slavery or without slavery, and they refused to 
• •vercise the right. Butit is urged tiiai they could 
not vote for or against slavery without voting for 
the constitution. Admitting this, 1 would ask who 
is to blame.' Surely those who ab.stained from 
exercising the right of popular sovereignty when 
the delegates v/ere elected to the constitutional 
convention. Here is a willful determination, and 
repeated, not to take |iart in any proceeding which 
recognized the Territorial Legislature; and which 
omission, in my Judgment, stops them from any 
claim upon, or right to, our sympathies. Gov- 
ernor Walker, in referring to the selection of del- 
egates, distinctly warns them what would be the 
consequences if they should not participate in the 
election. He says; 

" The people of Kansas, then, are invited by (he highest 
aiuhority known to the Constitution to participate freely and 
(airly in the cleclion of delegates to frame a constitution atid 
??Tato jiovernment. The law has performed its entire ap 
liiopriate function when it extends to the people the rijlit of 
siilii:i!;e, but it cannot compel the performance of that duty. 
'l'litoii!>hout our whole Union, however, and wherever free 
uoveniiui'iit prevails, those who abstain from the exercise of 
the riirht of sulVrage authorize those who do vote to act for 
ihem in the continsency, and the absentees areas nuich 

' "d tinder the law and constitution, where there is no 

h-.iiul orvi,iic;ice,by the.act of the majority of those who do 

lie, as Kail hud participated in the election. Otherwise, 
■ ■• votins »)ust he voluntary, self-governnienl would he ini- 

ractietdjje.and monarchy or despotism would remain as 
the only altcriiMive." 

This is the true doctrine, and I have never 
heard it questioned. I firmly believe that, judg- 
ing by the past acts of the Republicans of that 
rerritory, if this constitt;tion is sent back the 
same obstinacy and difficulty will exist. It was 
t.ieir deliberate intention that the constitution | 
should be presented here with slavery to keep up 
that excitement, and to further aid and abet those 
>A'>o seek to break down the DetTiocratic party, ! 
and this honorable body will fail to assert its | 
rights and protect its dignity in permitting its at- 



tention longer to be occupied with this subject and 
tliese local contentions. 

The motives and acts of the Republicans have 
been such as cannot be recognized without over- 
turning all government, law, and order. The evi- 
dence is unquestioned and overwiielming, that 
they have been in a state of rebellion to the gov- 
ernment since the meeting was convened on tha 
14th or 15th August, 1855, which resulted in the 
convention, held September 19th of that year, 
which framed the Topeka constitution, to be put 
in opei-ation in subversion of the territorial gov- 
ernment e.stablished under the authority of Con- 
gress. The organization under that instrument, 
the a.ssstTibly of its Legislature, its acts, the pre- 
sentation of that constitution to Congress, the pas- 
sage of the bill admitting Kansas a State under it 
by the Republicitn members of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, and its rejection by the Senate, the 
; creation of arr>ied force.s in Kansa.s to sustain this 
revolutionary movement, are now tnatters of his- 
tory. These occurrences demonstrate the position 
I assume, and which is sustained by the President 
in his message, February 2, 1858: 

" This government [territorial] would long since have 
been subverted had it not been protected from their .'issaults 
by the troops of the United States. ;5uch has been the con- 
diition of allairs since my inauguration. Ever since thatpe- 
I riod, a large portion of the people of Kansas have been in 
a state of rebellion against the government, with a military 
leader at their head of a most turbulent and dangerous char- 
acter. They htive never acknowledged, but have constantly 
renounced and deticd, the governineiit to which they owe 
allegiance, and have been all the time in a state of resist- 
ance against its authority. 'I'hey have all the time been en- 
deavoring to subvert it, and to establish a revolutionary gov- 
ern ment, under the so-called Topeka constitution, in its 
stead. Even at this very moment the Topeka Legislature 
is in session." 

Again he says: 

" The truth is, that, \\\i till the present moment, the ene- 
mies of the existing govennuent still adhere to their Topek.a 
revolutionary constitution and government. The very first 
paragraph of the message of Governor Robinson, dated the 
7th of necember, to the Topeka Legislature, now assem- 
bled at Lawrence, contains an open defiance of the Consti- 
intion and laws of the United States. The Governor says : 
'The convention w'hich framed the constitution at Topeka 
originated with the people of Kansas Territory. They have 
adopted and ratified the same twice by a direct vote, and 
also indirectly through two elections of State officers and 
ntembers of the State Legislature ; yet it has pleased the 

; Administration to regard the whole proceeding revolutiou- 

' ary.' 

I "ThisTopekagovRrnmenl, adhered to with such treason- 
able pertinacity, is a government in direct opposition to the 
e.vistinggovernment prescribed and recognized by Congress. 

I It is a iisurpation of the same character as it would be for 
a portion of the people of any State of the Union to under- 
take to establish a se[)arate government, within its limits, 
for the purpose of redressing any grievance, real or imagin- 
ary, of winch they might complain, against the legitimate 
State government. Such a principle, if carried into execu- 
tion, would destroy all lawful authority and produce univer- 
sal anarchy." 

In these revolutionary acts may be discerned 
the objectof the Republicans, and that is, to agi- 
tate until the Topeka constitution is accepted. This 
cannot be done so long as Congress recognizes the 
legitimacy of territorial organization, and would 
be subversive of the fundamental principles of our 
Government. The question then arises, does the 
Lecompton constitution coriie to us in a legal forin .' 
The only mode in which a people of a Territory 
can form their constitution, oralterit whena State, 



is through the Legislature. This is the proper ' 
manner of ascertaining the popular will. Apply- 
ing this rule to Kans-\s, we find that the Kansas- 
Nebraska act K,'ft tile " people of the Territory 
perfectly (roe to form and regulate their domestic 
institutions in their ov.-n way, subject only to the 
Constitution of the United States. " Acting upon 
the power thus conferred, proceedings v/ere had 
authorizing the election of delegates to form a con- 
stitution. Such election was held; the convention 
assembled at Lecompton, adopted the constitution 
now presented to us forour action. I have already 
disposed of the objection that but a small part of 
the voters exercised their right. The question 
then arises, what can and should Congress do in 
the premises, and what power does it possess? 

The Constitution provides that new States may 
be admitted by the Congress into this Union, and 
" the United States shall guaranty to every State 
in this Union a republican form of government." 
The Lecompton constitution is legally framed, 
presented, and is repuijlican in form, and the Ter- 
ritory should be admitted at once as a State under 
the power thus contVrred. It has been urged that 
i.'ven if a part of the people would not voie,tl)ey 
should still be protected against their own wrong- 
ful omission. I am fire to say, Mr. Chairman, 
that I should feel reluctant to participate in any 
act that would inflict a wrong upon the citizens of 
Kansas, and would not do it knowingly. I would 
not vote for a measure that I believed would fasten 
upon them a [)ermaiient constitution thatcouldnoi 
be altered or amended; but, sir, I can see no wrong 
in giving them a republican constitution, and con- 
.ferring upon Kansas the powers of a sovereign 
State. I have examined the provisions of that 
constitution, and find it is as democratic as that of 
other States. 1'he following liberal provision is 
in the bill of rights: 

" All political pnwer is inherent in the pfople, and all 
tree goveriuiit'iits jire rouiidcil on their aufliorily, and in- 
stituted for their liciK'tit; and tlu-refore they hai-e al all times 
an inalietiahlc and indcf'easihie ris;ht to alter, reform, or ahol- 
Uh their form of government in siK-h manner as lliuy may- 
think proper." 

This is a full reservation of power by the peo- 
ple, except so far as its exercise is restricted by 
the constitution. Taking the position I have, that 
an alteration of such an instrument can only be 
effected by legislative action, except in case of 
revolution, and believing, with the late lamented 
Webster, the great expounder of constitutional 
law, " that no single constitution has ever been 
gotten up by mass meetino^s," that " there must 
be some mode of ascertaining the public will, 
somehow and somewhere;" and, " if not, it is a 
governmeniof the strongest and most numerous," 
1 can only recognize the right of the people of 
Kansas to change their constitution in the manner 
prescribed thereby. If Kansas is admitted under 
the Lecompton constitution, can it be altered? 
and, if so, when? It provides for a change as 
follows: 

" Skc. 14. After the year 1884, whenever the Legislature 
shall lliiiik it necessary to amend, alter, or change tliis con- 
stitution, they shall rccnniinend to the electors at the next 
general election, two thirds of the members of each Mouse 
concurring, to vote for or against calling a convention ; and 
if it shall appear that a majuriiy of all the citizens of the 



State have voted for a convention, the Legislature shall at 
its next regular session, call a convention,"' &,c. ' 

It seems to me that this section (and I give it 
as my opinion only) takes effect in fuluro, and 
that, until 1864, there is no restriction that can 
prevent a prior alteration. I shall not occupy the 
attention of the committee in elucidating this point 
—it has already been ably done, and especially 
by my friend the honorable member from Penn- 
sylvania, [Mr. Phillips.] I presume it will not 
be disputed that, if Congress or a State Legislature 
pass a law to take elfect on and after such a day, 
(named,) or after such a time, it cannot take ef- 
fect or become operative until the period desig- 
nated has expired. The same rule would apply 
to a constitutional provision. The Topeka con- 
stitution has the following: 

" Sf.c. 4. No convention for the formation of a new con- 
stitution shall be called, and no amendment to the consti- 
tution shall Imj, by the General Assembly, made, belbre the 
year 1805, nor more than once in five years thereafter." 

This contained a restraint or restriction that 
] would become immediately operative. 

The State of New York illustrates, in her ac- 
tion, the etTf-ct of both provisions. The consii- 
, tulion of that State, of 1777, contained no provi.<!- 
' ion for its amendment. The Legislaiure,in 1821, 
1 passed a law sulimilting to the jxople the propri- 
: ety of amending the constitution. They responded 
i in the aflirmative. The convention wJiich assem- 
bli-d, instead of amending the old one, framed a 
' new constitution, which Was accepted. The one 
I thus formed contained a clause directing the mode 
; of changing it. In 18-16, contrary to ilie restric- 
' tion, the people, through the Legislature, called^ 
I another convention, and formed the existing con- 
stitution. 
I Mr. Chairman, no serious objections are urged, 
; I believe, against any other jiart of this constitu- 
1 tion e.xcept the slavery provision, or point raised 
except as to the provision relating to an amend- 
ment. It may be said to iiave been recognized in 
I solemn form by the whole people of ^hat Territo- 
ry; for, after the con.stilution was framed, an elec- 
tion was ordered and held under its jn-ovisions 
for the election of Slate olhcers and the Legisla- 
ture. In law this is an estoppel, and amounts to 
' an assent. 

1 Suppose, sir, that instrument could not be al- 
tered before 1864: what injury would result there- 
by to the parly that desire it to be a free State ? 
iSone. It is conceded that there are now in Kan- 
: sas but about one hundred and sixty slaves. With 
[ a supposed free-State majority in the Terfitory, 
I wiih climate and soil adverse to the pe'inanent 
} existence of .shivery, I do not believe that southern 
1 gentlemen would desire to take iheirslavcs there, 
! so that the present number would not be greatly 
increased before the people could amend their con- 
\ stitution. The public welfare, the repose of the 
nation, and, indeed, every consideration that can 
j influence the patriot and lover of his country, 
demand that this suliject should be promptly dis- 
missed from the Halls of Congress. Kansas ad- 
mitted, and the peojile of the Territory will then 
adjust theirown internal affairs, peace be restored, 
i a inore natural and healthful flow of immigr;iUon 
' than that sent forward by the emigrant aiJ soci- 



ettes will occur, peaceful pursuits be cultivated, 
instead of threatened warlike amusements. If 
Kansas is not admitted, the excitement now per- 
vading the country will be continued, the subject 
will again be presented at the next session of 
Congress, impeding all IcgislaB )n, and perhaps 
to tiie following one; with each protraction he 
waves of angry and embittered feeling rolling 
higher and higher. It does not require a prophetic 
spirit to foretell the disastrous consequences that 
may ensue. 

Mr. Chairman, political history presents curi- 
ous phases. It shows the members of the Oppo- 
sition party to have opposed all the leading meas- 
ures of the Democratic party in times gone by, 
until public sentiment indicated their adoption as 
part of the public policy of the country, and, after 
being driven from point to point, they sought 
shel ter under the slavery agitation , in which refuge 
they now remain, pressing it on regardless of con- 
sequences to the Union. In the last Congress 
they were the opponents of non-intervention, or 
popular sovereignty, and in favor of congressional 
interference, and opposed to an enabling act; now 
we find them in favor of an enabling act and in fa- 
vor of popular sovereignty, and what the next 
])hase will be to-morrow may determine; it is not 
unlikely that we may find them voting for the ad- 
mission of a slave State. They have the warmest 
sympathy for " bleeding Kansas," and cry fraud! 
fraud ! and charge high crimes upon the Demo- 
cratic party; but they have none for the great city 
of New Vork, whose vested rights were ruthlessly 
invaded by a R.:publicnn Legislature, and strip- 
ped of many of its chartered privileges, to give 
spoils and patronage to tiieir adherenls. I have 
been taught to believe that "charily begins at 
home." 

Another singular spectacle is presented: we 
find several honorable members, who fought side 
by side with us in the great political battle which 
resulted in the recognition of non-intervention in 
local affairs of Territories, recently voting for the 
appointment of a special committee to intervene 
in its worst form in the domestic affairs of a Ter- 
ritory. Among the latterl find my colleague, [i\lr. 
Haskin.] It was with feelings of regret and mor- 
tification that I heard him utter the f^'ollowing lan- 
guage: 

;'• In arriving at tlic conclusion to voteasainst the admis- 
sion of Kansas n.iilcr tlie Leconipton constitution, I have 




ii.ansas un<er llic Lecoinpton constitution— repudiated and 
n ?.n, ^'''^'""^' "' *' '"' I'i' ^^ ''^a--' tl'fe loi"-tlis of het 

!.^n,ur'"f '''■■" ^'"' ""^ iiPProval of a lar-e majority of my 
con>tituents, whose wistu^s I am in honor hound to'obev,! 
kliall vote agamst the admission of Kansas under the Le- 
conipton constuution." 

The honorable member represents the counties 
of Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam. I was 
liurn on the banks of the noble Hudson, in the 
county of Westchester; the traditions of home 
clustered around and have been identified with it 
-or more than a century; my early life was spetit 
in rambling among the rocks, hills, and dales of 
mat beautiful region, until they became familiar 



as household words. It is classic ground, hal- 
lowed by the footsteps of the Father of his Coun- 
try and his compeers; the scene of some of the 
mostimportant events of the war of independence 
Revolutionary patriots now sleep the sleep ol 
death beneath its green sod; and there rest, too, 
the remains of Paulding, (and his associates,) thi 
capturer of Andre, whose last request to his med- 
ical attendant was, " Please tell all those who ask 
after me that I die a true Democratic Republi- 
can," and whose descendant my colleague so re- 
cently defended on this fioor. Surrounded by 
such association, the Democracy of that section 
cannot, will not, falter in a crisis like this; and I 
am justified in saying that my colleague does not 
represent the wishes of the constituents that hon- 
ored him with his election. Public meetings have 
been held in the several counties of the district, 
condemning his course, and the Democratic preys 
IS unanimous against it. My colleague will bear in 
mind that his predecessors, in 1854, voted against 
the Kansas-Nebraska bill in opposition Fo the 
wishes of his constituents. He boasted that he 
could be returned upon that vote; not being nom- 
inated, he ran, in 1856, as an independent°candi- 
date, and received so small a number of votes that 
I do not find his name mentioned in the official 
canvass. Whether my colleague i.s to share the 
same fate, remains to be seen. While I desire 
the honorable member shall take all the credit he 
is entitled to for his advocacy in times past of the 
principles of the national Democracy, I cannot 
perceive how it can justify his present course. 
Others before him have been distinguished for 
consistent political action, and yet by"a sino-le act 
have blighted the good effect of all their alitece- 
dents, and destroyed their political future. With- 
out intending anything personal, but by way of 
illustration, I would say that Arnold was e.s- 
teemed a true and loyal officer, and had done the 
State some service, until he committed treason 
against his country. Will it be urged tiiat his 
treason was therefore justified .' 

I have heard much during this debate of " read- 
ing members out of the party." Sir, no formal 
pronunciamiento is required' for that purpose. 
Tliey are out by the operation of their own act; 
they are in the position of the soldier who, in the 
hour of battle, deserts to the enemy; the penalty 
follows. It is idle to suppose that, when gentle- 
men proclaim the result of their act wilf be to 
break down the national party, and elevate a sec- 
tional one with its attendant consequences, and 
are doing all they can to attain that object, they 
can remain, when the act is completed, in full 
cominunion with the party they se^k to destroy. 
Their proper place is with the Opposition, and 
time will soon place them in that association. 
History is full of examples of conflicts between 
individuals and the party; but each instance has 
resulted in a signal failure of the assailant. The 
contest in such cases is as unequal as that be- 
tween a mere guerilla band and a powerful and 
well-organized army. INJen, as individuals, are apt 
to exaggerate their power when directed against 
organizations. In struggles with the Democratic 
party, men are but pigmies con tending with giants. 
They may be compared to the fly on the wheel: , 



6 



tlie fly is cruslied, and the wheel rolls on. When- 
ever a great issue, as in the present case, arises, 
involving: perhaps the very existence of the Union, 
it is the diUv of every man havine; at heart the 
welfare of the nation to sustain tiie Administra- 
tion in its patriotic course, and more especially 
those who hold their seats in this honorable body, 
and were elected upon the same platform with the 
present distinguished chief. 

Sir, I entreat these anti-Lecompton Democrats 
to pause in the step they are aliout to take in the 
opposition. You concede the great purpose and 
mission of the national Democratic party; you 
concede it is the ^reat bulwark that alone can ar- 
n St the ascendency of sectionalism; you concede 
that such a triumph may result in a separation of 
the States, bringing in its train calamitie.s that may 
be conjectural but not foretold ; and yet you stand 
ready to strike the parricidal blow. Siinuhl this 
measure be defeated by your votes, and the dis- 
aster flow from it which has been predicted, you 
i-annot fail to be regarded hereafter as the parri- 
cides of the Republic. 

Mr. Chairman, the northern national Democ- 
racy stands )io\v, and will continue to stand here- 
after, bvthe principles established liy the Kansas- 
Xebraskaact,aiid those enunciated at Cincinnati. 
We insist that the Territories, as well as States, 
have the sole right to determine their local and 
municipal matters, and that each should be let 
alone to manage them in their own way. This 
course must ultimately force the slavery agitation 
out of Conirress, notwithstanding the embarrass- 
nsent which has thus fur attended the applic;uion 
of the primiple to Kansas. The present difficulty 
has grown out of the premature immigration 
forced upon the Territory by slavery agitators, 
which went there, not to cultivate tlie soil, but to 
foster the excitement which has of late convulsed 
the whole country, and of which all, I believe, 
are heartily tired'. This rule adopted will not 
produce like consequences again. There may be 
.some struggle when a constitution with slavery 
)r5 presented, but 1 believe public sentiment will 
determine that it shall be no bar to admission on 
that ground. Once firmly established and acted 
upon in good faith, slavery will be left to the law 
of climate and soil to control it. This law, which 
has been siN'ntly working since the adoption of 
the constitution, has caused the abolition of sla- 
very in six of the original States, and either abol- 
ished or prohii)ited it in nine of the new States 
since admitlL-d, and which has now brought to 
us two, if not more, free States for admission into 
the Union, thereby destroying the equilibrium 
between the slave and free States, imposes, in my 
judgment, a higher duty upon the national De- 
nioc!-acv of the North than has hitherto existed, 
to see tiiat the conijiromises of the Constitution 
are maintained, and the rights of the States se- 
cured. Its action in the past is a guarantee for 
the future. All that the southern States demand 
i.>» to be allowed to control their own affairs, and 
equal rights with the other Slates. When a new 
State seeks admission, and its people desire sla- 
very, Conirress should not inter]iose objection, if 
the constitution is republican in form, but should 
at once admit it into the Union. The national 



Democracy are fully committed upon this point, 
and will redeoTn the pledge. 

Mr. Chairman, my colleague, [Mr. Haskim,] 
in his remarks, uses the following language: 

" I honestly ln-liovp tliat. but for pntroirtao, fast bpcniniiiif 
the liaiieoftlie Il''public. not ten Democratic nifinibers I'rom 
the free s=tates would be I'ouiul supportiii',' the Lecoiiiptoii 
constitution as it lias been presented to us." 

I hold that no member of this honorable body 
should make even a vague charge of this grave 
character against his associates, even from belief, 
unless foundi^d upon some fact. If the integrity 
and honor of any gpntleman has yielded to the 
seductions of patronage and power, it is proper 
and due to the dignity of this honorable body that 
it should be known, and the person ov persona 
named. I therefore call upon my colleague [Mr. 
Haskin] to give this information, and the facts 
upon which his l)i;lief is founded; my respect for 
this honorable body f<irl)ids that I should charac- 
terize this charge in .such terrns as it deserves. I 
await his response: I can make great allowance 
for excitement ini'.ident to debate. The remarks 
of my colleague, however, having been ]irepared 
in advance, and re id from a printed copy, indi- 
cate premeditation and deliberation. While my 
colleague makes an assault on the one side, the 
honorable member from Illinois, [Mr. Morrvs,] 
in saying that the " northern men who vote for 
the admission of Kansas under the Lecompton 
constitution are going to their political graves," 
(I do not quote the exaci language, not having his 
remarks before me,) pays us a high compliment, 
for which, as one, I thank him. It shows his con- 
viction that we have been guided by higher mo- 
tives than selfish considerations. 

Sir, I have heard it stated on this floor, and lield ■ 
i«/crrore»ioverthe northern Lecompton members, 
that the Kansas-Nebra.ska act republicanized lUn 
last Congress. Without desiring to refer in detail, 
I desire to state a fact not generally understood. 
The whole country has been made aware hma^ 
since of the division in the Democratic party of 
the State of New York from 1853 to 1856. It is 
to be di?plored, l)ut nevertheless true, that had the 
Hard and SoA vote been united upon single catidi- 
dates in 1854, it would have secured eleven more 
members in the last Congress — seven by a ma- 
jority vote, and four by a plurality — making H 
total of fifteen, and sjiven to the Democratic parly 
in Congress a decided majority. 1 may also soy 
that the twelve Democratic members from tlirfl 
State in the present Congress were returned upon 
the principle contained in the Kansas-Nel'iaska 
act. 

In times gone by, the parties in this country 
were divided into the Democratic and Whig party. 
Many glorious i)attles were fought between them, 
and many brilliant and gallant contests were had 
by the rival leaders u[)on this floorupon the great 
questions which, from time to time, have agitated 
the country. As participants in these intellectual 
encounters, the names of Calhoun, Clay, Web- 
ster, Benton, and a host of others, now occur to 
me. In all the giant efiorts of these statesmen— 
amid all the heat, zeal, and bitterness of debate 
and parly warfare— there was one common bond 
between them, and that was the love of the Union. 



Tlie Whis party was national — it was glorious to 
battle with it— it was " a foe worthy of our steel." 
In its triumphs, however much we might differ 
from its policy, the country rested secure upon 
its nationality. The great issues between them 
were decided by the people in favor of the Dem- 
ocratic part}', and the contentions ceased. The 
great leaders of the Whig party, Clay and Web- 
ster, liaviiig lived the period allotted to man, and 
devoted their wlioie lives, from their manhood to 
their graves, to the service of their country, full 
of horiors, passed away to the silent tomb, amid 
grieved hearts, bearing to their eternal home the 
affection and veneration of their fellow-country- 
men. The Whig party ceased to exist, and the 
Opposition party were without a leading principle. 
The slavery agitation, which bad for a longtime 
been seen but dimly in the distance, now culmin- 
ated in the Republican party, and a bitter, sec- 
tional, and fanatical contest ensued. In this strug- 
gle the national Democratic party — lifting itself 
up to its giant proportions, reinforced by a part 
of the national portion of the Whig party, several 
of whom, I am proud to say, are now upon this 
floor cooperating with us, met the enemy and tri- 
umphed. Though defeated, they were not con- 
quered; and the war is being waged. 

No intelligent person can be so blind as not to 
see, in the .success of a northern sectional party 
arrayed against the constitutional rights of the 
South, that a counter-geographical party must 
arise. When this occurs, it is easy to foretell the 
Consequences. I shall not dwell upon it. In this 



crisis we can only look to the Democratic {mriy 
in the future; it occupies a broad, national phu- 
form, and guards scrupulously the rights of all 
sections. 1 believe in its invincibility and in its 
great destiny: its nationality will preserve it; the 
peo[ile must see the consequences of its defeat; 
and I feel a deep conviction that when the hour 
of trial comes, all classes will rally to its support 
as the oidy means of preserving the Union, v/liich 
they are taught to love and cherish from earl}- 
childhood. I love my whole country; it is with 
regret that I see contrasts presented, atti^mpting 
to show the greater prosperity of one section or 
class over another. We are one aggregated whole 
— v^hat adds to one part strengtliens the other. 
Our |)ower and greatness as a nation result from 
combination, and from that alone must it increase 
and be carried on in the fulfillment of its great 
future. 

This protracted struggle is drawing to a close: 
the President of the United States has taken his 
position firmly, and it ia our gntve and solemn 
duty to sustain him. I have tulcen mine, what- 
ever may be the individual consequence, and can 
say, in the language of the lamented President 
Jackson, when standing over the rocks of the Rip 
Raps, looking upon the ocean, wlien friends were 
deserting hirn by legions in consequence of his 
firm course upon the public measures of his dav: 
"Providence may change ray determination; but 
man can no more do it than he can remove these 
Rip Raps, which have resisted the rolling ocean 
from the beginning of time." 



Printed at the Congressional Globe Office. 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




